Jumping through consumer windows

Thanks to the TNS Arab As Consumer Program (ARAC) and support from many of its clients, we can now for the first time segment the Saudi consumer into 7 distinct and identifiable segments. Marketing has just become that much more complicated - or has it?

Well, if people in the marketing industry are willing to change and evolve at the same frantic pace as their consumer, then developing relevant marketing programs should be no more complicated than in the past. And evolution is happening and is manifested in a new buzz word - consumer insights.

The word insight conjures up the notion of being 'within reach', close by', 'around the corner'. The point is, however, insights are not immediately obvious: you have to search for them. And some of the best placed professionals to help marketers search for insights are qualitative marketing researchers because they provide a natural link to consumers.

Qualitative marketing research is also evolving quickly: the quintessential Focus Group is now only one of an ever growing variety of tools used today. We are working with clients and evolving beyond a linear relationship with consumers -- and 'just sitting behind the mirror' - to developing multi-dimensional and sometimes unpredictable relationships with our clients' consumers.

Why is all of this so important?

Firstly, company growth is traditionally achieved organically or through acquisition. In both instances, increased profitability can be achieved by driving costs out of the business - but - it is not a long term sustainable strategy. Increased profitability can also be achieved through the application of consumer insights - innovation - and this is a sustainable strategy.

Secondly, the Arab consumer is evolving, segmenting and most importantly, moving beyond rational brand connections (where brands are seen as a commodity or reference) to emotional brand connections (where brands are seen as a personality or icon).

It is the emergence of emotional brand connections that is significant, because it's so much more challenging to develop sustainable brand resonance at an emotional level than at a rational one.

So, more than ever before, there is a need to dig deeper into consumer psyches in search of insights. This can only be achieved by 'jumping through consumer windows': getting close to your consumer, becoming your consumer. As an old Chinese proverb puts it:

'What I hear, I forget. What I see, I remember. What I do, I know.'

Getting close to your consumer is becoming easier in the Middle East. Those who make a commitment to consumer connectivity and make it part of their business lives are the ones making a difference today.

You can go 'jumping through consumer windows' using Al Taqqarub (Arabic for 'getting close to') tools, which take on many forms. One of the simplest is a Consumer Home Safari and as the name suggests, it is a safari (visit) to the home of one of your target market consumers.

It is always a memorable experience for your visiting out-of-town Marketing Director who is new to the region. In around 2 hours he gets an appreciation of his consumer's immediate surroundings, their lifestyle, needs, wants, aspirations, dreams, product usage and more.

There are also a whole host of other formal and long term Al Taqqarub programs such as Consumer Panel Safaris (a permanent group of target consumers e.g. chefs, hairdressers, smokers, youth etc. who agree to be contacted, interviewed, accompanied on a regular basis) and more.

Al Taqqarub programs are limited in scope only by the imagination of the researcher and the marketer. Over time, they work to going beyond findings to developing consumer insights that help you to:


• get to know YOUR consumer;

• discover and develop concepts that have resonance - an EMOTIONAL consumer connection.

Effective marketing communication, branding, new product development: in one word innovation: sometimes comes through moments of creative inspiration. But more often that not innovation today is driven by multi-disciplinary teams working closely together with a consumer closeness or connection program as the core foundation. Making it work takes time and experience - those who start now will have sustainable competitive advantages in the future.